The Prevailing Darkness
by BakaRain
Summary: Twenty-six years after the fall of Chattur'gha a new Ancient will rise up to consume everyhing in darkness. What has happened to Alex?/ That's the best summary I got till now. Take it or leave it, sweethearts.
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Prevailing Darkness

Disclaimer: This Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem fanfiction is a work of fiction! . . . well that was anti-climatic. I do not own the game nor do I have any rights to the original story. That belongs to Silicon Knights and Nintendo, and I'm very glad they do. Charles and his six children and Veronica are of my insane creation.

Furthermore, this is my first try at a Eternal Darkness fanfiction, though the story I have plan has been going around my head for some time now. I do not promise anything with it, but some review will help me, call it inspiration if you will.

Warning: There might be some errors and some ideas in the story not expressed well. If there are grammatical errors, please let me know. If you don't understand what I meant to say in a specific sentence, please let me know.

Enjoy swetthearts!

Title: The Prevailing Darkness

**Chapter 1: Missing a guest **

"Boo!"

Charles Roivas jumped away, quickly engaging his defenses to full throttle as life's experiences had taught him. His alcoholic drink, which he had held in his hand contently barely a minute ago now, had fallen from his hand, spilling on the floor.

In a blink of a second, Charles had his fingers latched on the shirt of a now spooked teenager.

"Maximillian Roivas! In the name of Light, have you been listening to anything I have said to you since the day you were born?"

"Chill down, Dad. It was just a joke."

Charles left go of his youngest son's shirt, as he adjusted it back under his tuxedo. "You know better than that Max."

"Yeah, yeah, no practical jokes when Mom's not around. Hey Ed! How's the married life going so far?" Max asked as the groom came to them.

The wedding had been beautiful, and the reception was underway with the sound of music blasting from some speakers. The party was at a roof top of a hotel that the bride and groomed loved for when they were in High School, their first kiss had been there during Prom Night. Charles felt too uncomfortable, even when it was his son's wedding. Edward Roivas was his first born and it could be seen in his face that he was extremely happy with his wife Veronica. However, Charles felt uneasy because he was worried about _his_ wife.

"Why so gloomy?" Charles asked his oldest son, for during all the afternoon he had not noticed how his eyes kept as cloud of darkness behind the happiness.

"I think is pretty obvious, Dad." Edward replied.

It was more than obvious as a matter of fact. The wedding was beautiful and the bride and groom kept eyeing each other with all the love they had toward the other. But the wedding held a tint of sadness. The groom's mother was not present at the wedding and so far no one had heard a decent excuse as to why she was absent.

Charles looked away. He could not face his sons. If he did, not only would he had to tell them the story of Humanity, but he would also put them in jeopardy. Unfortunately, the wedding had landed on the same day that was the anniversary of Chattur'gha's destruction. For twenty-six years, Alex and Charles on that particular day, they paid more caution to The Darkness that might be unleashed upon them.

It had been hard for the married couple to decide which would not go to their eldest son's wedding, but at the end they came to a decision. Since Charles's abilities against the Ancients and their monsters were better when it came to attack, it was decided that Alex should stay, for she was better with defense. If anything went wrong, Alex would give the call and Charles would go to help her. But so far nothing had happened during the passage of time; however the Guardians of Light couldn't dare to grow comfortable. Darkness was not dead and was ever planning.

"If you wanted your mother present, then you should have listen to us and do the wedding at the Estate." Retorted back Charles loosing his temper.

Edward glared. "God damn it, Dad! I wanted this to be Veronica's dream wedding. I couldn't—"

Charles waved his hand, dismissing the rest of Edward's words just as the rest of the Roivas joined them. As always to see his six children united filled Charles with sanity. He tilted his head back in contentment as he had a flashback.

_Alexandra bent down to pick up her sword, Gladius, as she tried not to move her injured arm._

_Charles stared at her as she sighed in relief. Chattur'gha was dead and like she had done, the past Guardians of the Light could also take a sigh of relief. The battle had been long and hard, and bloody, countless of innocent lives were lost, but finally for a short moment they were free._

"_So what happens now, Alex?" Charles asked as he walked over to her, smiling as he went._

_She retuned the smile. "I'm going to finish collage, then move back to the Estate. You are welcome to join me if you like."_

_Charles reached over and grabbed her bare hand. Like their companionship had been in the past few days, their hands were intertwined tightly and determinately. "There is nothing I would want more, sweetheart."_

_They contemplated each other, knowing that they would give their life for the other's safety. Charles only knew Alex for a couple of day, yet he wanted to always be at her side. He loved her, as he knew that she loved him regardless of time. Everything would be great between them, but a bit of doubt managed to creep into Charles' mind. Sure they were a good team against the Ancients and they were in love. . . could that be enough to face the ever coming darkness? There were two other Ancients alive still, and Mantorok had more years of suffering left._

"_Alexandra, you say you want to move into the Roivas Estate, isn't that dangerous for us? Yes, the place needs to be guarded, but after all that happened inside there. . . What if our hearts are consumed with darkness while living between those walls?" His mode was momentarily grim, but her light and rare laugh erased all his dark thought. _

"_I have a plan for that Charles, my dear."_

_Charles raised an eyebrow at her._

"_We're gonna fill that house with kiddies, maybe that will chase The Darkness away."_

Charles repressed a gleeful smile.

Three boys and three girls. Six children was Alex' idea of filling the mansion she inherited. And during their lives, The Darkness had been present in their minds, but only at the edges, were the veil of reality was firmly put. Alex and Charles watched their children grow up in peace and light.

Merely days after their collage graduation, Alex gave birth to Edward, and then on short years followed the rest of their children; Ellia, Anthony and Chandra, Maximillian and Michelle. All Roivas, since Charles didn't want the name to die with Alex. Even he, when he married Alexandra took the name.

For a couple of moments the Roivas Children, as they were called during their time in school, engaged themselves in conversation, making their father smile once again. Soon the bride, Veronica found her way between her guest to them and she took her place next to her husband.

Charles smiled at one of Max' jokes about someone's dress as the rest of the Roivas laughed, but it soon was extinguished by a far too familiar foreboding sense of impending death. Instinctually after checking his view range for any threat, his eyes moved to where his house laid to the distance.

As he stared he wondered, he feared and he doubted.

Just then his cell phone began to vibrate.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: This Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem fanfiction is a work of fiction! . . . well that was anti-climatic. I do not own the game nor do I have any rights to the original story. That belongs to Silicon Knights and Nintendo, and I'm very glad they do. Charles and his six children and Veronica are of my insane creation.

Furthermore, this is my first try at an Eternal Darkness fanfiction, though the story I have plan has been going around my head for some time now. I do not promise anything with it, but some reviews will help me, call it inspiration if you will.

Warning: There might be some errors and some ideas in the story not expressed well. If there are grammatical errors, please let me know. If you don't understand what I meant to say in a specific sentence, please let me know.

* * *

Title: The Prevailing Darkness

**Chapter 2: An unwanted visitor**

Her mind set in not getting bored, and not growing sad about not being able to be at her son's wedding, Alexandra Roivas busied herself with doing the laundry.

The Roivas Estate was an easy enough house to live in after getting past the haunting presence of every room. The mansion was old and even living there for twenty-six years, Alex still was wary of the sounds the house made. Regardless of that and the history of her ancestors that lived there, the Roivas Estate was an animated and lovely household when the Roivas Children were around to fill it with life. Having been born and raised in that house, the children did not know of the haunting sounds their parents heard, they did not pay attention to the scary stories the neighbors told, and they did not care of the creepy faces of their ancestors hanging on the walls of the Estate.

As the Roivas family grew, so did the Estate. Rooms had been added to the mansion by paid architects, whose jobs were to find space in the already exciting massive house. Each Roivas child, when they came to a certain age, was given a room for his or her personal and private use.

Alex carried a large basket full of dirty clothes down the stair of the foyer, heading into the basement door to her left without a second thought. Like always, she did hesitate once she remember the metal door on the floor that would lead her to the long-deserted City of Ehn'gha. There were boxes and things on top of it that she and her husband had put there so the children would not stumble upon it.

She continued her rout to the washing machines, thinking that she and Charles held many secrets together. And that at least brought her piece of mind. If she hadn't gone trough the experience of facing her grandfather's death and learning of Humanity's real history and the Ancients with Charles, Alex did not know what would had been of her life. She loved him and adored him, and was glad that fate had put him in the Ancients way, because it was that that caused Charles to meet her grandfather. Alex was sure that Edward had seen something special in him, if not he wouldn't have trusted Charles with her sanity. Charles was Alexandra's light in The Darkness, and she knew that the feeling was mutual.

Alexandra had just loaded the washing machine with the last load in the basement when she remembered that Max probably left his dirty clothes laying all around his room. She sighed. Max was the last of her boys staying at the house and that was only because the boy had decided to go to a community collage close by, unlike his older brothers, and Ellia who had taken their parents example and had gone to Washington to study at the university. Edward and Ellia had come back though, after graduating, but only the girl stayed at the house, since Edward went to live with Veronica in an apartment.

With an empty basket placed against her hips, Alex made her way to the first floor of the mansion, and then went up the stairs to the second floor. Max, being only seventeen years old, had his room looking like a tornado had rampaged around. Nothing alike to what any of his older siblings kept their rooms.

After Alex bent down to pick up a particular piece of clothing that could be smelled from miles away, the woman's gaze landed on the view the window provided. Outside the reaches of her property, stood a figure she had only seen recently in her wildest nightmares.

Alex did not say his name, nor did she allow her mind to sigh it. To do that would be as if to call him out. She stared perplexed. The twenty-six anniversary of the fall of the Ancient Chattur'gha and on Edward's wedding day, The Darkness began to move against the Roivas family once again.

* * *

Charles gave a rather stiff toast and the people present wondered. He had barely spoken of when Edward was a child (as was expected from a proud father as he was), and almost even less of the time when the groom had dated the bride. However, he did relay a message for the newlyweds sent by Alex, and that erased all the uneasy thought the people had had. His children though, knew him better. None of them had seen their father so upset since Antony pretended once to have thrown away a psychology book their mother had given him.

With another drink in his hand and standing as close as he could get to his house on the hotel roof, Charles took out his cell phone. Chandra, Antony and Michelle were about to join him just as he noticed that he had four missed calls. Moments before, when the phone had begun to vibrate, Charles was not able to answer it, for the wedding planer had dragged him away to do the toast. Now, he damned to the Forbidden City the wedding planer. The calls were from Alex.

Quickly and ignoring his children, Charles called his wife, fearing for the worst.

She didn't even let the phone ring it seems, for soon the man could hear Alex' frantic tone trying to be controlled. "Charles! Oh thank the Light. I was beginning to worry." She said calming as she spoke. Her voice seemed hushed as if she was hiding from something.

"I should be the one worried, Alex. What happened? Are you alright?"

"It's him, Charles. He's back." He voice broke, but it wasn't in fear, Charles knew. She was heartbroken, The Darkness was back.

"Are you hurt? Did that bastard hurt you? Tell me what happened, Alexandra. Where is that son of a bitch?" Upon hearing their father's words, the Roivas Children instantly gave all attention to what Charles said. They knew better than interrupting him when he was worried about their mother. Though, they did not know of what 'son of a bitch' Charles was speaking of. Sure he was always suspicious of the men around their neighborhood, but to insult them was not something their father would do on a normal basis.

Edward and Ellia shared a glance as Charles listen to his wife. One thing is for sure between the older siblings, their mother was in trouble.

"He's outside." Alex said. "He follows me from window to window. Charles the walls are bleeding."

Charles cursed, turning his back on his children and staring toward where he saw the roof of the Estate. Alex was the stronger of the two, and she already was low in sanity by just seeing that damn Liche, what hopes did he have of retaining his? "Stay clam Alex, I'm on my wa—"

"He's doing someth—"

Just as they spoke at the same time the ground began to shake. People around Charles began to scream looking to stabilize their feet from the unexpected and unwanted surprise. The last Charles heard from his wife though the phone, were some frantic words.

"Oh shit, he's casting a circle!"

Charles could only stare as a massive bean of blue light erupted from the Roivas Estate, shooting up to the sky. The moment was frozen, and Charles felt as if the rest of Rhode Island was watching with him the light show irrupting from the fabled Roivas Estate.

As suddenly as the earth began to shake, it ended and the blue light was consumed by the darkness of the night.

* * *

Alex lumped on the floor of one of her daughters' bedroom. She was exhausted and she was certain she had drained herself of magic. But she had to do it. The Liche had been on the edge of summoning a Black Guardian. Alex was able to stop his spell with her own equally powered Circle of Power which caused a massive shock of powers. Though, it chilled her that after Chattur'gha's death, Pious Augustus had allied himself with Ulyaoth.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: This Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem fanfiction is a work of fiction! . . . well that was anti-climatic. I do not own the game nor do I have any rights to the original story. That belongs to Silicon Knights and Nintendo, and I'm very glad they do. Charles and his six children and Veronica are of my insane creation.

Furthermore, this is my first try at an Eternal Darkness fanfiction, though the story I have plan has been going around my head for some time now. I do not promise anything with it, but some reviews will help me, call it inspiration if you will.

Warning: There might be some errors and some ideas in the story not expressed well. If there are grammatical errors, please let me know. If you don't understand what I meant to say in a specific sentence, please let me know.

Title: The Prevailing Darkness

**Chapter 3: Hurry!**

Charles, along with his offspring stared at what they knew was their house. Only one of the group had an idea of what had happened, and he remained unmoving, staring blankly at what could take away all his sanity away. He held on, though, by the need to know what was going on.

What happened? What was going on? Were they in danger? And most importantly, what happened to Alex?

"Did you see that? That came from our f-ing house!" Max yelled earning a glare from Chandra and Antony, who were twins. The young boy was pointing at his house, at the same time as the other guests of the wedding were coming out of their shock. All Rhode Island knew of the scary legends that came out of the Roivas Estate, and all believed them to be true. The most famous of that legend and the one with most concordance was that a demon laid trapped beneath the house, thus from there had come the peculiar inhabitants the house had had. Every rumor of convicted and hung witches to committed madmen and bizarre deaths were explained by the demon's presence and influence. Though, Charles and Alexandra had their own theory of this. They thought it wasn't because of some demon, but more because of the peculiar City of Ehn'gha, maybe some interesting magic flowed through the years from there, influencing the Roivas Family.

"Watch your tongue!" They both said to their younger brother at the same time. They had a knack of simultaneously speaking at all times, (something that Alex had encouraged, for she had always had a fascination with twins) they even spoke long sentences without missing a syllable. Some people believed their heads were linked together, for how would they be able to speak the same things without rehearsing what they were to say? And not to mention that they both had mismatched eyes.

Edward held his wife's hand tightly and with the other he cupped Michelle's face to reassure her, for she had ran to his side when fear consumed her. Veronica was confused and frighten, thinking that there was something off in the air. She had never been superstitious or of the sort, however she felt like the cold hands of an incredulous creature had seized her.

Ellia walked over to stand next to her father, her gaze fixed on the roof of their house that now seemed so far away and alien-like. She had no idea of what had happen or even if it was good or bad, but by the look her father had on his face, she came to terms that the beam of light was definitely not a good thing. "I wonder what Mom will think of this."

Those words made Charles snap out of his shock. "Alex" He whispered finding his voice and as the implications of what happened slinked in. The Darkness was afoot, and his wife was in possible danger. Charles flexed his right hand, missing the familiar weight of his Winchester Shotgun. "Alex!"

Charles jumped into motion immediately, just as he had done countless of times before. He ran pass his children and Edward's frighten guests, heading to the elevator that would take him to ground level. Unbeknownst to him since he was beginning to despair the Roivas Children were hot on his tail, and before he could escape into the elevator, they all filled in after him. Veronica waved from the outside of the elevator as the doors automatically shut.

Edward wasted no time to interrogate his father as he loosened up his bow tie. He wasn't the type to just wait until it was the right time to ask, for he had a natural desire to know everything at the precise moment. Even more when it had to do with the human mind and their way of being. Like Ellia, he was one of the most matures and well headed of the Roivas. The brother and sister even looked like twins themselves. They had inherited brown hair and deep brown eyes that Charles had only recently seen in Alexandra's grandfather. To tell the truth, they were so alike Grandfather Edward that Alex often saw him in her children. "Okay Dad, spill it. What happened to Mom and how is it related to that fucking light?"

Antony and Chandra glared at their older brother. The twins seemed to have no tolerance for bad language. They, of the six, were the ones who brought and kept righteousness and chivalry in the group of siblings. They were both equally patient, collected and kind. As they were both equal in appearance. Their looks were more sided with Alex parenting that from Charles. Chandra and Antony were blonde, lithe and slimed in body.

Charles refused to look at his eldest son.

Edward knew his father well to know that it would take more than a question to get him to speak, Charles was after all a good psychiatrist. But this was different. Charles was being weird and Edward had the feeling that his father wouldn't beat back his questions with psychiatrist talk. "Dad, I have just left my wedding reception. As the seconds tick by I grow more anxious about Mom—"

"We all do." Michelle added as she held Ellia's hand for support. Charles stared at her. Michelle wasn't the most talkative of the six Roivas Children and if she did speak it was because it was important and necessary; the complete opposite of her brother, Maximilian. Who barely shut up, and was the trickster of the family. In spite of that, Michelle and Max looked very alike. They had inherited Charles auburn hair, though Max tilted to a more reddish.

"Tell me." Edward continued gaining the attention of Charles. "Why I left Veronica on her own on our wedding day."

The father of the group was saved as the doors burst opened and he speeded out of the lobby. He ignored further questions all the way to his car, almost running to it. Time was of the incense. (AN: Is that how you say it? Because I have no idea) When the Roivas Children had cramped in the car, Charles willed them to silence with a wave of his hand.

"My sweet little ones." Charles said to emphasize his words, for that is what he always called them when they were each babies. "I am worried to death about your mother's safety, thus I hurry to her. I promise that if you listen to me and shut up, all your questions will be answered. After I make sure Alexandra is unharmed. Do we have an agreement?"

After careful consideration, the six Roivas Children nodded.

* * *

Alex ran to her room, careful in ignoring the walls and sculptures as she went, for her sanity was in an all time low. Her energies were recuperating slowly since it had been a while since she had used rune magic without having the Tome of Eternal Darkness in hand.

Yes, she stopped Pious for the moment, but she was certain that a Horror stalked the foyer of the Estate. She had to get to her room and retrieve Gladius if she was to defeat it. The Tome of Eternal Darkness, as far as she currently knew, was too far away for her to use it as protection or enchantment. Her only hope was that she hadn't become too rusty in sword handling.

The roar of the beast shook the very foundations of the old mansion. Alexandra could feel how The Black Heart of Mantorok concealed its dying power in the library. The other essences were far too hidden for her to feel. Gladius was hidden under the drawers in her bedroom, enchanted so her sons and daughters would never by chance bump against it.

At touching the image of the rune, the enchantment was broken, and Alex took the sword. The hilt was familiar to her hand to the point that it gave her a sense of calmness. Like many individuals in the past, she was a Guardian of the Light. She could do this.

* * *

Charles took a calming breath for the fifteen time. Alex is okay, he willed himself to believe, because it is the truth.

The Roivas Children had listened to their father, and where in complete silence. They were in utter confusement, but they knew something was wrong. Charles had always been a cool man; he never lost his calm when dealing with the random situations his children would put him in. It was the first time his kids had seen him so frantic, and Edward and Ellia thought that it would had been best to leave at the reception the two younger Roivas. It was too late for that now however; Charles was heading at top speed toward their home, ignoring with great skill traffic signs and barely missing the impacts of other cars.

Soon the Roivas Estate came into their view; the car's light making the house look daunting and haunted. And Charles knew that The Darkness was on the move again by how the house looked. It hadn't looked like that since Alex and he defeated Pious. As he looked around he slowly pulled away his veil of reality. To his ears alone, he heard what was the sound women and children made when screaming in utter fear. And for a moment he thought his kids were screaming. He looked next to him on the passenger seat, but he found that Edward was completely calm as he regarded his house with new curiosity.

"This can't be happening!" Charles whispered under his breath. His sanity was too low for his own good. Charles did not want to waste more time, the gate was closed, so without giving any warning he abruptly stopped the car and jumped out as he spoke: "Ed, drive the car in."

Charles opened the gate just enough for he to pass, leaving his kids to enter by themselves. He knew they weren't in any real danger, yet. He ran all the way to the front doors, not daring to think anymore only praying that his Alex was unharmed. What waited him on the other side of the doors was a sight he had hoped never to see again. The Horror, to his relief, was dead. Its three massive heads were not attached to its muscled body. Charles gagged as the putrid and familiar smell finally hit him, but he looked around the foyer of the house.

There!

Alex was sitting at the top of the stairs, Gladius between her bent legs. She was haggard, her blonde hair was messed up as she sat, not really focusing on anything as she stared. Charles held his breath, from where he stood she seemed all right, however you never know when dealing with the Ancients. "Alex!"

His voice carried over to the woman and she seemed to snap out of her trance. She raised her head to see the man who stood at the doors. Suddenly life washed over her face as she stood up and ran down the stairs; around the small mount of rotting flesh and into the waiting arms of her husband.

Charles let out his contained breath as he held his wife tighter in his embrace. She was all right and in one piece. She had defeated the Horror even after twenty-six years of not facing one. And all Alex could think was that she wasn't alone anymore. Once again she had her love, her greatest ally and battle companion.

"Holy mother of God!" Edward said just as he came rushing through the front doors, his younger siblings behind him. The all stared at the lump of death flesh in the foyer of their house, with astonishment. Just then, the creature began to disintegrate and disappear, leaving the foyer looking as if the creature had never been there in the first place.

"Mom?" Ellia said along with Michelle who stepped closer to the mother to see if she was alright. It was then that Ellia realized that her father, regardless of what had taken place at the Estate, was now relieved by having Alex close. It made her wonder if Charles had had an idea of what was happening to her mother all along.

"What the fuck was that?" Maximillian yelled staring at the spot where the creature had been laying. The twins said nothing, for they too were wondering the same thing with the same kind of language as Max.

Alexandra pulled away from Charles' embrace, but otherwise did not leave it. "It was a Horror." The mother said blankly to her children not expecting a reaction from them.

"I'm sure it must had been a horror, but," Ellia asked as Michelle stared. "What was it?"

The mother's knowledgeful gaze landed on her oldest daughter. "It was what I said it was Ellia." She turned to Edward. "What happened to the party?"

"Veronica stayed there." Edward said slowly.

"She might not be safe there, Charles." Alex said to her husband. "She should come here."

"What?" Edward demanded, but was ignored by his parents.

"The Estate is not as safe as it used to be, sweetheart." Charles told her as he noticed that Ellia and Chandra were trying to call Edward down.

"That's not necessary true. I can feel the spells are still in place. And I'm sure I weakened Pious as he did to me. But you are here now. After Veronica arrives here, we'll close the gate and bolt the doors and windows."

Charles nodded at Alex' words. "Then I should fetch my Winchester and the Tome in case the Ancients decide to unleash a creature in the house again."

"Take a look at the Essences too, honey."

* * *

AN: There you go, a long chapter for the long wait.


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